Wine cellar and method for controlling same

ABSTRACT

A wine cellar includes a storage room for storing food, a cooling device for supplying cooled air to the storage room, a heating device for supplying heated air to the storage room and a fan for circulating outside air of the wine cellar and inside air of the storage room. A temperature sensor senses the temperature in the storage room. A processor determines an operation mode of the wine cellar on the basis of the sensed temperature of the storage room and a set temperature for the storage room, and selectively controls the cooling device or the heating device on the basis of the determined operation mode. When the determined operation mode is a heating mode, the processor controls the fan to allow the outside air to flow into the storage room, and controls the heating device to start supplying the heated air during the operation of the fan.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to a wine cellar and a method for controlling same. More particularly, this disclosure relates to a wine cellar capable of performing a heating operation after lowering humidity in the cellar using a fan, and a method for controlling the same.

BACKGROUND ART

A refrigerator is an electronic device (or home appliance) capable of storing eatable or drinkable food (or groceries) for refrigeration or freeze through a refrigeration cycle using a refrigerant.

Recently, there has been developed a refrigerator for not only keeping an ordinary food refrigerated, but also for storing a specific food. For example, a wine refrigerator (or wine cellar), etc., for storing wine in an optimal state has been launched.

Wine has different storage temperatures depending on a type. Champagne is mainly stored at a temperature range of 4° C. to 7° C., a white wine at 8° C. to 13° C., and a red wine at 14° C. to 18° C. Thus, a wine refrigerator (or wine cellar) may be designed to ensure a wide temperature range from 4° C. to 18° C., and a separate heater may be applied thereto.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

It is an object of the disclosure to provide a wine cellar capable of performing a heating operation after lowering humidity in the cellar using a fan, and a method for controlling the same.

Technical Solution

According to an embodiment, a wine cellar includes a storage room to store food, a cooling device to supply cooled air to the storage room, a heating device to supply heated air to the storage room, a fan to circulate outside air of the wine cellar and inside air of the storage room, a temperature sensor configured to sense temperature in the storage room, and a processor configured to determine an operation mode of the wine cellar based on the sensed temperature of the storage room and a set temperature for the storage room, and selectively control the cooling device or the heating device based on the determined operation mode, and the processor may, based on the determined operation mode being a heating mode, control the fan to introduce the outside air into the inside of the storage room, and control the heating device to start supplying the heated air during operation of the fan.

According to an embodiment, a method for controlling a wine cellar comprising a cooling device, a heating device, and a fan includes sensing temperature in a storage room of the wine cellar; determining an operation mode of the wine cellar based on the temperature of the storage room and a set temperature for the storage room; and selectively controlling the cooling device or the heating device based on the determined operation mode, and the controlling may include controlling the fan to introduce the outside air into the inside of the storage room and controlling the heating device to start supplying the heated air during operation of the fan.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a simple configuration of a wine cellar according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a specific configuration of a wine cellar according to an embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating related-art dew formation;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a method of removing dew formation according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 5 and 6 are diagrams illustrating an operation of a heating mode according to an embodiment; and

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling a wine cellar according to an embodiment.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

After terms used in the present specification are briefly described, the disclosure will be described in detail.

The terms used in the disclosure and the claims are general terms identified in consideration of the functions of embodiments of the disclosure. However, these terms may vary depending on intention, legal or technical interpretation, emergence of new technologies, and the like of those skilled in the related art. In addition, in some cases, a term may be selected by the applicant, in which case the term will be described in detail in the description of the corresponding disclosure. Thus, the term used in this disclosure should be defined based on the meaning of term, not a simple name of the term, and the contents throughout this disclosure.

The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may be diversely modified. Accordingly, specific exemplary embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and are described in detail in the detailed description. However, it is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to a specific exemplary embodiment, but includes all modifications, equivalents, and substitutions without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. Also, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail since they would obscure the disclosure with unnecessary detail.

Terms such as “first,” and “second” may be used in describing the various elements, but the elements are not to be limited by the terms. The terms may be used only to distinguish one element from another.

A singular expression includes a plural expression, unless otherwise specified. It is to be understood that the terms such as “comprise” or “consist of” are used herein to designate a presence of a characteristic, number, step, operation, element, component, or a combination thereof, and not to preclude a presence or a possibility of adding one or more of other characteristics, numbers, steps, operations, elements, components or a combination thereof.

Hereinafter, non-limiting example embodiments of the disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art to which the disclosure pertains may easily practice the disclosure. However, the disclosure may be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to embodiments described herein. In addition, in the drawings, portions unrelated to the description will be omitted.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a simple configuration of a wine cellar according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 1, a wine cellar 100 includes a storage room 110, a cooling device 120, a heating device 130, a fan 140, a temperature sensor 150, and a processor 160.

The storage room 110 is disposed inside the wine cellar 100 to store food. The storage room 110 may be maintained at about 4° C. to 7° C. to store the champagne, at about 8° C. to about 13° C. to store white wine, or at 14° C. to 18° C. to store red wine.

A plurality of storage rooms 110 may be arranged to store different foods. For example, the storage room 110 may store the champagne, white wine, and red wine, respectively, in order to store wine by types. Respective storage rooms may be maintained at different temperature ranges.

The storage room 110 may be provided such that a front surface is opened to allow inserting or withdrawing food, and the opened front surface may be opened and closed by a door (not shown). A shelf, or the like, to place food thereon may be provided in the storage room 110.

The cooling device 120 may supply cooled air to the storage room 110. Specifically, the cooling device 120 may supply cooled air to the storage room 110 to lower the temperature of the storage room 110 under the control of the processor 160. The cooling device 120 may include a compressor (not shown), a condenser (not shown), and an evaporator (not shown).

The compressor may compress a gaseous refrigerant at a high pressure. The condenser may apply a high pressure to change the compressed gaseous refrigerant into a liquid state. The evaporator may apply a low pressure to vaporize the refrigerant in the liquid state again. In this example, the heat of the ambient air may be absorbed while the refrigerant is vaporized again. The ambient air that has absorbed heat may be provided to the storage room 110.

The cooling device 120 may include a Peltier element or a thermoelectric element in addition to the above-described example for supplying cooled air.

The heating device 130 may supply heated air to the storage room 110. The heating device 130 may supply heated air to the storage room 110 to increase the temperature of the storage room 110 under the control of the processor 160. The heating device 130 may include a heater (not shown). The heater may be a heating element that receives power and generates heat directly. Alternatively, the heater may be implemented using a Peltier element or a thermoelectric element.

The fan 140 may circulate the outside air of the wine cellar 100 and the inside air of the storage room 110. The fan 140 may suck outside air through a suction portion of the wine cellar 100 under the control of the processor 160, and may discharge the inside air through the outlet of the wine cellar 100, thereby circulating the outside air and the inside air.

The temperature and humidity of the storage room 110 may be changed as the fan 140 circulates the outside air and the inside air. For example, when the outside air of the wine cellar 100 is dry air of 10° C. and the inside air is a humid air of 15° C., the outside air may be inhaled by the fan 140 and the inside air may be discharged to lower the temperature and humidity of the storage room 110.

The temperature sensor 150 may sense the inside temperature of the wine cellar 100. Specifically, the temperature sensor 150 may be disposed inside the storage room 110 to sense the temperature of the storage room 110. Alternatively, the temperature sensor 150 may be disposed outside the wine cellar 100 to sense the outside temperature of the wine cellar 100.

A plurality of temperature sensors 150 may be disposed to simultaneously detect a plurality of temperatures. The temperature sensor 150 may provide the detected temperature information to the processor 160.

The processor 160 may perform control for each configuration in the wine cellar 100. The processor 160 may control an operation of the configuration related to the function, based on receiving a command for a specific function.

The processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 so that the temperature of the storage room 110 may maintain a set temperature, based on receiving a command corresponding to the set temperature for the storage room 110.

The processor 160 may determine the operation mode of the wine cellar 100 prior to controlling the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130. The operation mode may be configured with a cooling mode for supplying cooled air to the storage room 110 to lower the temperature of the storage room 110, or a heating mode for increasing the temperature of the storage room 110 by supplying heated air to the storage room 110, and is not limited to the above example.

The processor 160 may determine the operation mode based on the detected temperature of the storage room 1110 and the set temperature for the storage room 110.

If the temperature of the storage room 110 is higher than the set temperature for the storage room 110, the processor 160 may determine the operation mode as the cooling mode. If the temperature of the storage room 110 is lower than the set temperature, the processor 160 may determine the operation mode as the heating mode.

For example, if the current temperature of the storage room 110 is 10° C. and the set temperature is 16° C., the processor 160 may determine the operation mode as the heating mode. As another example, if the current temperature of the storage room 110 is 16° C. and the set temperature is 10° C., the processor 160 may determine the operation mode as the cooling mode.

The processor 160 may selectively control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 based on the determined operation mode. When the determined operation mode is the cooling mode, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120, and when the determined operation mode is the heating mode, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130.

The processor 160, when the determined operation mode is a cooling mode, may supply cooled air to the storage room 110 and control the cooling device 120 so that the temperature of the storage room 110 reaches a lower set temperature.

The processor 160 may supply heated air to the storage room 110 when the determined operation mode is a heating mode, and control the heating device 130 so that the temperature of the storage room 110 reaches a higher set temperature.

The processor 160 may control the fan 140 to be driven first, prior to controlling the heating device 130 to supply heated air to the storage room 110. Specifically, when the determined operation mode is the heating mode, the processor 160 may control the fan 140 to be driven first so that the outside air of the wine cellar 100 flows into the storage room 110.

The reason why the fan 140 is driven prior to controlling the heating device 130 is to lower the humidity of the storage room having increased humidity due to operation of the cooling device by discharging the inside air of the storage room to the outside of the wine cellar and sucking outside air having a relatively low humidity inside the wine cellar. When the humidity of the storage chamber is lowered, a dew formation phenomenon in the wine cellar may be prevented.

The dew formation phenomenon and a method of removing dew formation will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

The processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to resume supply of heated air while the fan 140 is operating to decrease humidity of the storage room 110.

The processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to control the fan 140 for a predetermined time, and to start the supply of heated air after a predetermined time. Here, the predetermined time is the time averagely required to decrease the humidity of the storage room 110 to a specific humidity capable of preventing dew formation. The predetermined time may be 30 minutes, 1 hour, etc., but is not limited thereto.

When the temperature of the storage room 110 reaches a set temperature, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 to maintain the set temperature. When the temperature of the storage room 110 reaches a set temperature by controlling the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 to maintain the temperature of the storage room 110 at a set temperature in consideration of the outside temperature of the wine cellar 100.

If the outside temperature of the wine cellar 100 is higher than the set temperature, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 to maintain the set temperature. For example, when the outside temperature is 15° C. and the set temperature is 4° C., the temperature of the storage room 110 may be increased due to the external influence of the wine cellar 100, so that the processor 160 may maintain the temperature of the storage room 110 at a set temperature by using the cooling device 120.

If the outside temperature of the wine cellar 100 is lower than the set temperature, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to maintain the set temperature. For example, when the outside temperature is 10° C. and the set temperature is 15° C., the temperature of the storage room 110 may be lowered due to the external influence of the wine cellar 100, so that the processor 160 may maintain the temperature of the storage room 110 at a set temperature by using the heating device 130.

The processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 and may control the fan 140 at the same time. The processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 to supply cooled air to the storage room 110, and at the same time, may control the fan 140 so that the cooled air may be evenly spread inside the storage room 110. The processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to supply heated air to the storage room 110, and at the same time, may control the fan 140 so that the heated air may be evenly spread inside the storage room 110.

A simple configuration of the wine cellar has been described, but in implementation, various configuration may be added. This will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a specific configuration of a wine cellar according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 2, the wine cellar 100 according to an embodiment may include the storage room 110, the cooling device 120, the heating device 130, the fan 140, a temperature sensor 150, a processor 160, a humidity sensor 170, an input device 180, and a memory 190.

Since the storage room 110, the cooling device 120, the heating device 130, and the fan 140 perform the same function as that of FIG. 1, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. The processor 160 has been described with reference to FIG. 1, and the contents already described in FIG. 1 will not be described, and only the contents added in FIG. 2 will be described below.

The humidity sensor 170 may sense the inside humidity of the wine cellar 100. The humidity sensor 170 may be disposed inside the storage room 110 to sense the humidity of the storage room 110. The humidity sensor 170 may include a plurality of humidity sensors 170 to simultaneously sense a plurality of humidity. The humidity sensor 170 may provide the sensed humidity information to the processor 160.

The processor 160 may control the fan 140 using the sensed humidity information of the storage room 110. When the operation mode of the wine cellar 100 is determined as the heating mode, the processor 160 may first control the fan 140 to introduce the outside air into the storage room 110 to lower the humidity of the storage room 110. The processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to start the supply of heated air when the humidity of the storage room 110 reaches a predetermined humidity during operation of the fan 140.

The preset humidity may refer to humidity sufficient to prevent dew formation. The predetermined humidity may be set in consideration of the outside temperature and the set temperature of the wine cellar 100. The predetermined humidity may be set to a fixed value, such as 75%, and is not limited thereto.

When the humidity sensor 170 has a plurality of humidity sensors 170, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to start the supply of heated air when the humidity sensed by each of the plurality of humidity sensors reaches a predetermined humidity during operation of the fan 140.

The dew formation phenomenon and a method of removing dew formation will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

The input device 180 may include a plurality of function keys that a user may set or select various functions supported by the wine cellar 100. The user may input various driving commands to the wine cellar 100.

The user may input a storage mode corresponding to the type of food through the input device 180. For example, if the wine cellar 100 is a wine cellar, the user may select one of a champagne storage mode for storing champagne, a white storage mode for storing white wine, and a red wine storage mode for storing red wine. Meanwhile, the user may input the set temperature of the storage room 110 directly through the input device 180 in addition to the storage mode corresponding to the type of food.

The processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 so as to have the temperature corresponding to the input storage mode or setting temperature through the input device 180.

For example, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 so that the temperature of the storage room 110 satisfies 4° C. to 7° C. when the champagne storage mode is input. As another example, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 so that the temperature of the storage room 110 satisfies 10° C. when the set temperature is 10° C.

When a new command for the set temperature is inputted through the input device 180, the processor 160 may determine an operation mode of the wine cellar 100 to have a temperature corresponding to a new set temperature. The cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 may be selectively controlled based on the determined operation mode.

The input device 180 may be implemented as a touch screen capable of performing a function of a display (not shown) displaying various information provided by the wine cellar 100.

A memory 190 may store various data for the operation of the wine cellar 100, such as a program for processing or control of the processor 160. To be specific, the memory 190 may store a plurality of application programs driven on the wine cellar 100 and data and instructions for operating the wine cellar 100.

The memory 190 may be accessed by the processor 160, and data reading/writing/modifying/deleting/updating, or the like, by the processor 160 may be performed. The memory 190 may be implemented not only as a storage medium in the wine cellar 100 but also as an external storage medium, a removable disk including a universal serial bus (USB) memory, a web server through a network, or the like.

The memory 190 may store information on a set temperature corresponding to the type of food. For example, the wine cellar 100 may provide a plurality of storage modes according to the type of wine, and the memory 190 may store information on a set temperature corresponding to a plurality of storage modes.

Specifically, in the case of a champagne storage mode for managing the champagne, the memory 190 may store 4 to 7° C. as the range of a set temperature, in the case of white wine storage mode to manage white wine, 8 to 13° C. may be stored as the range of set temperature, and in the case of red wine storage mode to manage red wine, 14° C. to 18° C. may be stored as the range of set temperature.

In illustrating FIG. 2, only the aforementioned configurations have been illustrated, but in implementation, a communication device (not shown) and a display (not shown), or the like, may be additionally provided.

In the related art, when the operation mode of the wine cellar is determined to be the heating mode, the heating device is operated immediately. At this time, when the temperature of the storage room is higher than the outside temperature due to the moisture deposited on an evaporator of the cooling device or the like, in a state where humidity of a storage room is high, there may be a problem that a dew formation phenomenon may occur.

As described above, according to an embodiment, if the operation mode of the wine cellar is determined to be the heating mode, by operating the fan first, instead of immediately operating the heating device, thereby lowering the humidity of the storage room, there may be an effect to prevent dew formation phenomenon even when the temperature of the storage room is higher than the outside temperature.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating related-art dew formation.

Referring to FIG. 3, a graph showing water vapor amount (g/m³) according to the temperature (□) by relative humidity (%) is illustrated.

Air may include different amount of water vapor depending on the temperature. A maximum water vapor amount that may be included in the air of the volume 1 m³ at a constant temperature is referred to as a saturated vapor amount, and the ratio of the amount of water vapor contained in the air in the volume 1 m³ to the saturated vapor amount represented in % is relative humidity. The relative humidity may be represented as follows:

Relative humidity(%)=current water vapor amount(g/m³)/saturated water vapor amount at the current temperature(g/m³)

The relative humidity has a feature that the larger the amount of water vapor contained in the air, the relative humidity may increase, and the larger the saturated vapor amount, the relative humidity may decrease. In addition, the saturated vapor amount may increase as the temperature increases.

When the amount of water vapor contained in the air is the maximum water vapor amount, it is called a saturation state, and the relative humidity may be 100%. When the temperature is lowered due to a certain cause without a change in the amount of water vapor, the amount of saturated vapor may be reduced, so that a portion of the water vapor contained in the air is condensed.

For example, when the current temperature is 20° C., the saturated vapor amount is 17.3 g/m³. However, when the temperature is lowered to 10° C., the saturated vapor amount becomes 9.4 g/m3, and some water vapor (17.3-9.4=7.9 g/m³) may be condensed to generate dew formation.

This principle may be applied to a wine cellar. With reference to FIG. 3, dew formation that may occur in a related-art wine cellar will be described.

In the related-art, when the temperature of a storage room is lower than set temperature, a processor may determine an operation mode as a heating mode, and may control to directly operate a heating device, or control so that a heating device and a fan simultaneously operate.

When the operation mode of the wine cellar is determined as the heating mode after the operation of the cooling device and the heating device is directly operated, the moisture deposited in the evaporator of the cooling device due to operation of the cooling device may be evaporated due to the heating operation of the heating device, and the steam of high humidity may flow into the storage room to increase the humidity of the storage room. If there are a lot of moisture deposited on the evaporator, the humidity of the storage room may reach relative humidity of 100%.

Due to the operation of the heating device, the temperature of the storage room may rise, increasing the saturated vapor amount, but when the water vapor is continuously supplied due to the moisture deposited on the evaporator, the humidity may continue to maintain a saturation state of 100%.

The temperature of the storage room temperature may be increased to be higher than the outside temperature of the wine cellar. In the case of air located at a place where the temperature is low, for example, air located in an inner surface of the housing of the wine cellar, heat may be lost to the outside, thereby the temperature may be lowered.

The air of which heat is lost to the outside may have reduced amount of saturated vapor due to the decrease in temperature, the saturated vapor being the maximum water vapor amount that may be included at the corresponding temperature. Therefore, some of the water vapor contained in the air of which heat is lost may be condensed to cause a dew condensation.

For example, when the temperature of the air of which heat is lost to the outside is reduced to the temperature of the outside air, the saturated vapor amount of the air of which heat is lost may be reduced to a saturated vapor amount corresponding to the temperature of the outside air, and the amount of water vapor that exceeds the saturated vapor amount corresponding to the temperature of the outside air, among the water vapor included in the air of which heat is lost may be condensed to generate dew formation.

Referring to FIG. 3, the initial temperature of the storage room may be 4° C., the outside temperature may be 15° C., and the set temperature may be 18° C. due to the operation of the cooling device. The humidity of the storage room may be increased due to the operation of the previous cooling device, so that the relative humidity is 100%.

As the heater device operates, temperature of the storage room may rise, and humidity may maintain 100% due to supply of moisture deposited to the evaporator of the cooling device.

As the heating device is continuously operated, a dew formation phenomenon may occur while the temperature of the storage room is higher than 15° C., which is an outside temperature. As the temperature of air in an inner surface of a housing of the wine cellar decreases due to the influence of the low temperature of the air, the amount of water vapor corresponding to the difference between the amount of water vapor in the storage room and the amount of saturated water vapor corresponding to the outside temperature may be condensed so that dew formation may be generated.

The wine cellar 100 may be provided with a glass window so that a user may check the wine placed in the storage room, and at this time, a dew formation may be generated on the window so that the user may not check the wine, feeling inconvenient.

When the heating device reaches 18° C. which is the set temperature, the heating device may maintain the corresponding temperature. At this time, since the fan operates together, the dry outside air may continuously flow into and the amount of water vapor in the air may gradually decrease.

The dew formation phenomenon described above may occur even when the humidity of the storage room is lower than 100%. For example, even when the humidity of the storage room is 90%, the temperature of the storage room may rise than the outside temperature, and when the amount of water vapor in the storage room is greater than the saturated vapor amount corresponding to the outside temperature, a dew formation may occur on the inner surface of the housing of the wine cellar. The dew formation phenomenon may occur primarily in the dew formation area of FIG. 3, but this is merely an example, and the dew formation area may be different depending on the humidity of the outside air, the amount of moisture deposited on the evaporator, and the like.

As described above, in the related-art, the heating device immediately operates after the operation of the cooling device, which may generate dew formation, causing customer's dissatisfaction.

Hereinbelow, a method of removing dew formation using a pen will be described.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a method of removing dew formation according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 4, due to the operation of the cooling device 120, the initial temperature of the storage room 110 may be 4° C., the temperature of the outside air may be 15° C. and the set temperature may be 18° C. Due to the previous operation of the cooling device 120, the humidity of the storage room 110 may rise, and the relative humidity may be 100%.

The processor 160 may first control the fan 140 prior to controlling the operation of the heating device 130. Due to the operation of the fan 140, the outside air of the wine cellar 100 may be sucked and the inside air of the storage room 110 may be discharged. As the outside air having a high temperature is sucked, the temperature of the storage room 110 may rise.

Since the humidity of outside air is relatively low to the inside air, the outside air of the low humidity may continuously flow into the storage room 110 due to the operation of the fan 140. However, due to the supply of moisture deposited on the evaporator of the cooling device 120, the humidity of the storage room 110 may still be maintained at 100%

When the fan 140 is operated continuously, there may be no additional moisture supply in the storage room 110, since all the deposited moistures may be evaporated, and outside air having a relatively low humidity may be continuously supplied to the storage room 110 to decrease the humidity of the storage room 110.

Referring to FIG. 4, it is illustrated that after the temperature of the storage room 110 reaches 15° C. which is the outside temperature, the humidity of the storage room 110 may be lowered before reaching the outside temperature according to the amount of moisture deposited on the evaporator of the cooling device 120.

If the humidity of the storage room 110 is sufficiently low, the heating device 130 may start to operate, and even if the temperature of the storage room 110 increases, the amount of water vapor in the storage room may not exceed the saturated vapor amount corresponding to the outside temperature, and thus a dew formation phenomenon may not occur.

The processor 160, based on determining that the humidity of the storage room 110 is sufficiently lowered, may control to start the operation of the heating device 130.

A criterion of determining by the processor 160 about whether the humidity of the storage room 110 is sufficiently lowered may be whether the preset humidity is reached sufficient enough to prevent dew formation through the humidity sensor 170. The predetermined humidity may be set in consideration of the outside temperature and the set temperature of the wine cellar 100. The predetermined humidity may be set to a fixed value, such as 75%, and is not limited thereto.

If the humidity of the storage room 110 reaches the preset humidity, the processor 160 may control that the heating device 130 starts operation. If the humidity of the storage room 110 does not reach the preset humidity, the processor 160 may control the operation of the fan 140 until the humidity of the storage room 110 reaches the preset humidity.

A criterion on determining by the processor 160 about whether the humidity of the storage room 110 is sufficiently lowered may be whether the fan 140 is operating for a predetermined time. The predetermined time may be the time averagely required to decrease the humidity of the storage room 110 to a specific humidity capable of preventing dew formation. The predetermined time may be 30 minutes, 1 hour, etc., but is not limited thereto.

If the operation time of the fan 140 reaches a predetermined time, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to start an operation. In contrast, if the operation time of the fan 140 reaches a predetermined time, the processor 160 may control the operation of the fan 140 until a predetermined time is reached.

A criterion on determining by the processor 160 about whether the humidity of the storage room 110 is sufficiently lowered may be whether the preset humidity is reached through the humidity sensor 170, after the fan 140 operates for a preset time.

If the humidity of the storage room 110 reaches a predetermined humidity after the fan 140 operates for a predetermined period of time, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to start an operation. After the fan 140 operates for a predetermined period of time, if the humidity of the storage room 110 does not reach the preset humidity, the processor 160 may control the fan 140 to operate for a predetermined time again.

A criterion on determining whether the humidity of the storage room 110 is sufficiently lowered and an action of the processor 160 if the criterion is dissatisfied are not limited to the above example.

The processor 160 may operate the heating device 130 to raise the temperature of the storage room 110 to 18° C. which is the set temperature. The processor 160 may operate the fan 140 at the same time so that the heated air may be evenly supplied into the storage room 110. Here, outside air having a relatively low temperature may flow in, but the influence of outside air may be offset due to the operation of the heating device 130.

If the temperature of the storage room 110 reaches a preset temperature, the processor 160 may control the cooling device 120 or the heating device 130 to maintain the temperature. Referring to FIG. 4, since the outside temperature is lower than the set temperature, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to maintain the set temperature.

In describing FIG. 4, the humidity of the storage room increases due to the moisture deposited on the evaporator of the cooling device, but this may be applied in the same manner when the humidity of the storage room increases due to supply of moisture not only by the evaporator but also by other reasons.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are diagrams illustrating an operation of a heating mode according to an embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an algorithm of a heating mode.

Referring to FIG. 5, the processor 160 may identify whether the condition of the heating mode is satisfied in operation S510. The processor 160 may identify whether the condition of the heating mode is satisfied depending on whether the temperature of the storage room 110 is lower than the set temperature.

Based on the condition of the heating mode being satisfied in operation S510-Y, the processor 160 may additionally identify whether the previous operation mode is the cooling mode in operation S520.

If the previous operation mode is the cooling mode in operation S520-Y, the dew formation phenomenon may occur due to moisture deposited on the evaporator, or the like, of the cooling device 120. In operation S530, when the previous operation mode is in the cooling mode, the processor 160 may identify that it is necessary to remove dew formation and may drive the fan 140 for a predetermined period of time so that the humidity of the storage room 110 is lowered. Here, the predetermined time may be one hour, and is not limited to the above example.

In operation S 540, the processor 160 may identify whether the humidity of the storage room 110 is less than a predetermined humidity. If the humidity of the storage room 110 is greater than a predetermined humidity in operation S540-Y, the processor 160 may control the fan 140 to operate for a predetermined time. If the humidity of the storage room 110 is less than a predetermined humidity in operation S540-Y, the processor 160 may control the heating device 130 to start an operation.

The processor 160 may be implemented in a manner that controls to start the operation of the heating device 130 according to whether the average humidity of the storage room 110 sensed by the humidity sensor 170 for a predetermined time is less than a predetermined humidity, rather than controlling to start the operation of the heating device 130 according to whether the humidity of the storage room 110 after a predetermined time is less than a predetermined humidity.

The plurality of humidity sensors 170 may be disposed at different locations of the storage room 110, and the processor 160 may control to start the operation of the heating device 130 according to whether a plurality of humidity sensed by the plurality of humidity sensors 170 after a predetermined time is less than a predetermined humidity.

In the case where the previous operation mode is the heating mode in operation S520-N, there is no moisture deposited on the evaporator, or the like, of the cooling device 120, and thus the likelihood of dew formation phenomenon may be low. Therefore, the processor 160 may identify that, if the previous operation mode is the heating mode, there is no need to perform an operation for removing the dew formation, and may control the heating device 130 to operate in operation S550.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a fan and a heating device.

Referring to FIG. 6, the fan 140 and the heating device 130 may be in a standby in a power off state ({circle around (1)}).

If the heating mode condition is satisfied, the fan 140 may start an operation prior to the heating device 130 as the processor 160 controls the fan 140 ({circle around (2)}). The processor 160 may additionally identify whether the previous operation mode is a cooling mode, and may be implemented in such a manner that the fan 140 operates prior to the heating device 130 only when the previous operation mode is the cooling mode.

When the fan 140 operates for a predetermined period of time, the processor 160 may identify whether the humidity of the storage room 110 satisfies a predetermined humidity. The predetermined time may be 1 hour, and the preset humidity may be 75%, but is not limited thereto.

If the humidity of the storage room 110 satisfies a preset humidity, the processor 160 may start operation of the heating device 130 ({circle around (3)}).

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling a wine cellar according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 7, first, the temperature of the storage room may be sensed in operation S710. In operation S720, the operation mode of the wine cellar may be determined based on the temperature of the storage room and the set temperature for the storage room. Specifically, when the temperature of the storage room is higher than the set temperature for the storage room, the operation mode of the wine cellar may be determined as the cooling mode. If the temperature of the storage room is lower than the set temperature, the operation mode of the wine cellar may be determined as the heating mode.

A cooling device or a heating device may be selectively controlled based on the determined operation mode. When the determined operation mode is the cooling mode, the cooling device may be controlled, and when the determined operation mode is the heating mode, the heating device may be controlled.

In operation S730, when the determined operation mode is the heating mode, the fan may be controlled so that the outside air of the wine cellar flows into the storage room. The fan may be controlled such that outside air of the wine cellar may flow into the storage room for a predetermined period of time.

The humidity of the storage room may be sensed. If a plurality of humidity sensors are disposed at different positions of the storage room, the plurality of sensors may be used to sense the plurality of humidity simultaneously.

The heating device may be controlled to start the supply of heated air during operation of the fan in operation S740. If the humidity of the storage room sensed during the operation of the fan reaches a predetermined humidity, the heating device may be controlled to start the supply of heated air.

The predetermined humidity may refer to humidity sufficient to prevent dew formation. The predetermined humidity may be set in consideration of the outside temperature and the set temperature of the wine cellar. In this example, an operation of sensing the outside temperature of the wine cellar may be additionally performed. The predetermined humidity may be a fixed value, such as 75%, and is not limited thereto.

More specifically, when the sensed humidity reaches a preset humidity after the operation of the fan for a predetermined period of time, the heating device may be controlled to start the supply of heated air. If the sensed humidity does not reach a preset humidity after the operation of the fan for a predetermined period of time, the fan may be controlled to operate for a predetermined period of time.

After the operation of the fan for a predetermined period of time, the average humidity of the sensed humidity may be calculated for a predetermined time, and when the calculated average humidity reaches a preset humidity, the heating device may be controlled to start the supply of heated air.

When a plurality of humidity sensors are disposed in the storage room, the heating device may be controlled to start the supply of heated air when the humidity sensed by each of the plurality of humidity sensors reaches a predetermined humidity.

According to the controlling method of the wine cellar, when the operation mode of the wine cellar is determined as the heating mode, the fan may be controlled to operate first, thereby lowering the humidity of the storage room and preventing dew formation even when the temperature of the storage room is higher than the outside temperature. The control method as shown in FIG. 7 may be performed on a wine cellar having the configuration of FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, and may also be implemented on a wine cellar having other configurations.

The controlling method may be implemented as at least one execution program to execute the controlling method as described above, and the program may be stored in a non-transitory computer readable medium.

The non-transitory computer readable medium refers to a medium that stores data semi-permanently rather than storing data for a very short time, such as a register, a cache, a memory, etc., and is readable by an apparatus (i.e., executable by at least one processor). In detail, the aforementioned various applications or programs may be stored in the non-transitory computer readable medium, for example, a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD), a hard disc, a Blu-ray disc, a universal serial bus (USB), a memory card, a read only memory (ROM), and the like, and may be provided. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A wine cellar comprising: a storage room to store food; a cooling device to supply cooled air to the storage room; a heating device to supply heated air to the storage room; a fan to circulate outside air of the wine cellar and inside air of the storage room; a temperature sensor configured to sense temperature in the storage room; and a processor configured to determine an operation mode of the wine cellar based on the sensed temperature of the storage room and a set temperature for the storage room, and selectively control the cooling device or the heating device based on the determined operation mode, wherein the processor is further configured to, based on the determined operation mode being a heating mode, control the fan to introduce the outside air into the inside of the storage room, and control the heating device to start supplying the heated air during operation of the fan.
 2. The wine cellar of claim 1, further comprising: a humidity sensor to sense humidity of the storage room, wherein the processor is further configured to, based on the sensed humidity reaching a preset humidity during the operation of the fan, control the heating device to start supplying the heated air.
 3. The wine cellar of claim 2, wherein the processor is further configured to control the fan for a preset time, and based on the sensed humidity reaching the preset humidity after the preset time, control the heating device to start supplying the heated air.
 4. The wine cellar of claim 3, wherein the processor is further configured to, based on the sensed humidity not reaching the preset humidity after the preset time, control the fan again for the preset time.
 5. The wine cellar of claim 3, wherein the processor is further configured to calculate an average humidity of the detected humidity during the preset time, and based on the calculated average humidity reaching the preset humidity, control the heating device to start supplying the heated air.
 6. The wine cellar of claim 2, wherein the humidity sensor comprises a plurality of sensors disposed at different locations in the storage room to sense humidity, respectively, and wherein the processor is further configured to, based on all the humidity sensed by the plurality of humidity sensors, respectively, during the operation of the fan, reaching the preset humidity, control the heater to start supplying the heated air.
 7. The wine cellar of claim 2, further comprising: a second temperature sensor to sense outside temperature of the wine cellar, wherein the preset humidity is set based on at least one of the outside temperature or the set temperature.
 8. The wine cellar of claim 2, wherein the preset humidity is 75%.
 9. A method for controlling a wine cellar comprising a cooling device, a heating device, and a fan, the method comprising: sensing temperature in a storage room of the wine cellar; determining an operation mode of the wine cellar based on the temperature of the storage room and a set temperature for the storage room; and selectively controlling the cooling device or the heating device based on the determined operation mode, wherein the controlling comprises: controlling the fan to introduce the outside air into the inside of the storage room; and controlling the heating device to start supplying the heated air during operation of the fan.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the controlling further comprises: sensing humidity of the storage room, wherein the controlling the heating device comprises, based on the sensed humidity reaching a preset humidity during the operation of the fan, controlling the heating device to start supplying the heated air.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the controlling the fan comprises controlling the fan for a preset time, and wherein the controlling the heating device comprises, based on the sensed humidity reaching the preset humidity after the preset time, controlling the heating device to start supplying the heated air.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the controlling further comprises: based on the sensed humidity not reaching the preset humidity after the preset time, controlling the fan again for the preset time.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein the controlling the heating device comprises calculating an average humidity of the detected humidity during the preset time, and based on the calculated average humidity reaching the preset humidity, controlling the heating device to start supplying the heated air.
 14. The method of claim 10, wherein the sensing the humidity comprises sensing humidity using a plurality of humidity sensors disposed at different locations in the storage room, and wherein the controlling the heating device comprises, based on all the humidity sensed by the plurality of humidity sensors, respectively, during the operation of the fan, reaching the preset humidity, controlling the heater to start supplying the heated air.
 15. The method of claim 10, further comprising: sensing outside temperature of the wine cellar, wherein the preset humidity is set based on at least one of the outside temperature or the set temperature. 